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Alberta tourism leaders, municipalities to meet in Lethbridge

The fourth annual Canadian Badlands Conference and Annual General Meeting will be held in Lethbridge, Alberta, March 25-27, 2014. The 3-day event which sold out last year, is expected to attract 350 delegates from 65 Alberta municipalities and Southeastern Alberta's tourism industry including accommodation establishments, parks, and major attractions.

Themed “Every Encounter Counts”, the 2014 Canadian Badlands Conference & AGM will give new and existing tourism organizations an opportunity to showcase their tourism product, forge new industry partnerships, discuss investment opportunities, and learn about the best tourism practices in Canada.

Keynote speakers include Anthony Cobb from Fogo Island, Newfoundland and Dennis Travale, Mayor of Norfolk, Ontario. Cobb, COO of Fogo Island, has co-led a team that has turned the remote and rugged Newfoundland island into an international geo-tourism destination. Travale is spearheading a 15 million dollar transformation to modernize and diversify the Sand Plains, a traditional tobacco-growing area in Southern Ontario. He is the Mayor of the community that hosted the only Mumford & Sons concert last summer. Every year, Port Dover also hosts Friday the 13th, an annual motorcycle touring event that attracts thousands.

"We are delighted to have Anthony Cobb and Dennis Travale join us in Lethbridge in 2014. They represent practices that are revitalizing their rural communities while preserving culture and heritage that might otherwise be lost. We look forward to announcing our full line up of speakers and workshops in the coming weeks", says Cindy Amos, executive director of the Canadian Badlands. "The City of Lethbridge is a natural fit. It is a strategic gateway for those travelling to the Canadian Badlands from British Columbia and from the United States via Coutts, Alberta's busiest border town."

Pre and post conference tours of the Lethbridge area will include visitor highlights such as the the Galt Museum and Fort Whoop-Up.

Registration is now open - an early-bird rate is available for those registering before January 31, 2014.

The Canadian Badlands tourism region encompasses over 90,000 square kilometers of southeastern Alberta stretching east from Calgary to the Saskatchewan border and south to the US border state of Montana.